2012 Voter Guide: Nevada 1st Congressional District

A Republican newcomer and two minor party candidates will try to play spoiler in the 1st Congressional District race, where former U.S. Rep. Dina Titus is heavily favored for a return trip to Washington, D.C.

Democrats hold more than a 2-to-1 edge over Republicans in voter registration after the boundaries were redrawn as part of redistricting. And Titus is well known after 20 years in the Nevada Senate and one term in Congress in Nevada's 3rd District.

As a result, the Republican Party isn't putting much effort into the race for the urban Clark County district now held by U.S. Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., who is running for the U.S. Senate against Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nev.

There has been no televised debate or major advertising blitz. Titus has been giving money from her sizable war chest to other Democrats in closer races as her party tries to retake control of the U.S. House from the GOP.

But Titus insists she has been campaigning just as hard as ever. "I think it was Richard Bryan who said you only run two ways: unopposed or scared," she said.

Titus beat out incumbent 3rd Congressional District Rep. Jon Porter, R-Nev., in 2008, only to be swept out of office during the GOP surge two years later, losing to U.S. Rep. Joe Heck, R-Nev.

Before that, she spent more than three decades teaching political science and American government classes at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and two decades in the state Senate, including 15 years as minority leader.

Titus wants to return to Congress to finish what she started.

Specifically, she wants to help those affected by the housing collapse by lessening the impact foreclosures have on credit ratings, standardizing the short-sale process nationwide and seeing that the foreclosure settlements states struck with banks are administered properly.

She also favors more investment in renewable energy, namely through government-backed loans, and more emphasis on improving the nation's education system from kindergarten through college.

"Voters have known me a long time, and they know what I stand for," Titus said.

Republican Chris Edwards has been largely left to campaign with his own money, but he said conceding a race based solely on voter registration is "a gross mistake on both parties."

A Naval officer, Edwards said he decided to make his first run for elected office because he felt his experience with the military, government and the private sector could help address the nation's severe economic, budgetary and bureaucratic problems.

At his last post, he was a strategic planner in Djibouti, at a U.S. military base in the Horn of Africa dedicated to fighting terrorism in Somalia, Yemen and other countries in the region.

"I've got a lot of experience that is relevant, current and needed in Washington, D.C.," he said. "This is an uphill fight, but it's a fight worth fighting."

Perennial also-ran Stan Vaughan, now a member of the Independent American Party, thinks he has a fighting chance of an upset if he can persuade enough disgruntled voters to cast their ballots for him.

The self-described chess grandmaster and "former pro-life Democrat" said he has researched every aspect of Titus' previous congressional service and is trying to meet with 1,000 people a day to convince them of his qualifications.

When asked about Titus' status as the prohibitive favorite, he said, "It's ridiculous."

Libertarian candidate Bill Pojunis doesn't think the result is a foregone conclusion either.

He believes there are plenty of voters out there who are fed up with both major parties and might be swayed by a third-party candidate.

"It's a throw-away race according to the Republicans, which is terrible," said Pojunis, a former tea party organizer who finally left the GOP 18 months ago after deciding the party could not be changed from within. "I don't think any race should be a throwaway."

Contact reporter Henry Brean at hbrean@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0350.